caliber

[Redcoat]

We just moved, and are now setting up our gunsmithing equipment. My father was going to show me some stuff on making custom guns, and we were going to make my first muzzleloading rifle together.

It is going to be a longrifle, with various peices and parts of different counties' rifles that I like. It will definately be a flintlock. I am now hovering over a caliber. I live in the base of the thumb of Michigan, and plan on doing lots of hunting for small game and whitetail, and plenty of target shooting. The two calibers that I am hovering over are .50 and .45. I was debating .54, but that's not very economical for all the target shooting and small gaming I will do.

So based on where I live and what I plan on doing, what would YOU recommend to me, the .45 or the .50?

Thanks,

Kevin

 

[Rebel]

Well, if it were me, and i was only going to have one caliber for everything, i would go with the .50 cal. You can download it for small game and it is plenty for whitetails. I have taken several western mule deer with a .50 cal. as well as a lot of small game. I like the .50 cal. as an all around cal. myself. JMO

 

[roundball]

The .50cal would also be my selection of the two for a single rifle choice

 

Agreed - the .50 is a great all-round calibre, as are any larger. The .45 will work for you, and is better for smaller game perhaps, but lacks the striking force of the larger calibres for heavier, stronger, more dangerous game. Deer aren't difficult to kill with well placed balls of either size, but I feel Black Bear are better handled with larger bore sizes. While deer are quite unlikely to retaliate, a bear can spoil your day & you never know when you'll see one with an attitude or simply, really hungry.
: Here, in B.C. there are areas where the grizzleys use rifle shots as dinner bells. While large and viscious looking and sounding, they aren't any where near as dangerous to humans as are the 'clowns of the woods', the Black Bear. B.Bears may be smaller, more likely to run at the sight of a human, but they and Polar Bears are the only bears in North America who have humans on their menu list.

 

[Redcoat]

Well, my dad has harvested at least 3 whitetails with his .40, and all of them have been one-shot kills.

We have a really nice .45 barrel here just waiting to become a flintlock longrifle. My dad was going to use it for my grandpa's gun to begin with, but he decided he wanted a .54 percussion. My dad kept the barrel with the thought of giving it a platinum touchhole liner (like a Manton). Also, the current hunk of wood that we have that I like (fine peice of maple) looks like it would just LUUVV to have that barrel in it.

On the other hand, .50 would be better for harvesting just about any critter in North America if aimed well. And I also have a pistol kit in the making that's a .50 so I'd need only 1 mold. As for that stock, well, it would take a .50 barrel just fine, given that the barrel is about the same size as the .45 (about 42 inches).

Oh and come to think of it, seeing that round balls lose half their energy at about 50 yards, the .50 would be better at retaining energy at range...

Kevin

 

[Stumpkiller]

I've been using a .54 for everything, and I just ordered a "one-rifle-to-rule-them-all custom flinter in .54 that will be my all-around everything rifle. It is still much more economical to load 40 gr behind a .53" lead ball and pop squirrels in the head than to buy a second, smaller rifle for small game.